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<TITLE>Magic-8.3 Command Reference</TITLE>
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<H1> <IMG SRC=graphics/magic_title8_3.png ALT="Magic VLSI Layout Tool Version 8.3">
     <IMG SRC=graphics/magic_OGL_sm.gif ALIGN="top" ALT="*"> </H1>

<H2>label</H2>
<HR>
Place a label in the layout
<HR>

<H3>Usage:</H3>
   <BLOCKQUOTE>
      <B>label</B> <I>string</I> [<I>position</I> [<I>layer</I>]] <BR><BR>
      <BLOCKQUOTE>
         where <I>string</I> is the text of the label, <I>position</I>
	 may be any valid <A HREF=direction.html><I>direction</I></A>
	 in <B>magic</B>, and <I>layer</I> may be any valid layer in
	 the technology.
      </BLOCKQUOTE>

      <B>label</B> <I>string</I> [<I>font</I> [<I>size</I> [<I>rotation</I>
		[<I>offsetx offsety</I> [<I>position</I> [<I>layer</I>]]]]] <BR><BR>
      <BLOCKQUOTE>
         where <I>string</I> is the text of the label,
	 <I>font</I> is the name or number of a font, <I>size</I> is
	 the integer size of the font, in standard <A HREF=distance.html>
	 distance</A> units; <I>rotation</I> is the rotation
	 (in degrees) of the font, <I>offsetx</I> and <I>offsety</I>
	 are the distance of the printed text relative to the reference
	 position (in quarter units of <A HREF=distance.html>distance</A>);
	 <I>position</I> may be any valid
	 <A HREF=direction.html>direction</A> in <B>magic</B>,
	 and <I>layer</I> may be any valid layer in the technology.
	 This usage is only available in <B>magic</B> version 8.0 and above.
	 See the <A HREF=setlabel.html><B>setlabel</B></A> command for
	 details on each of the label options.  <B>setlabel -default</B> can
	 be used to set default values for all of the optional properties
	 when they are not present on the <B>label</B> command line.

      </BLOCKQUOTE>
   </BLOCKQUOTE>

<H3>Summary:</H3>
   <BLOCKQUOTE>
      The <B>label</B> command places a label on the layout.  The label
      is marked by a point, line, or rectangle, depending on the size
      of the cursor box.  If the area under the cursor box contains
      exactly one type, the label will be "attached" to that type; that
      is, the label will name the network of the node containing that
      type.  If the area under the cursor box contains multiple layers,
      one will be chosen for attachment to the label.  If there are
      multiple network nodes under the cursor box, the result may not
      be what the user intended; in such cases, the user should specify
      which <I>layer</I> the label should be attached to, so that the
      appropriate network node will be labeled. <P>

      The label text is placed to one side of the marker in the
      direction indicated by the <I>position</I> argument.  For
      example, "<B>label text north</B>" will draw the label string
      "<TT>text</TT>" to the north (above) the marker. <P>

      In versions of <B>magic</B> prior to 8.0, labels cannot be
      directly modified;  modifications should be handled by first
      erasing the label with "<B>erase label</B>" and then redrawing.
      Versions 8.0 and higher use the <A HREF=setlabel.html><B>setlabel</B></A>
      command to modify selected labels. <P>

      Versions of <B>magic</B> from 8.0.139 allow the <I>layer</I> name
      to have a dash ("<B>-</B>") in front (e.g., "<B>-metal1</B>") to
      indicate a "sticky label", that is, one that is attached to the
      specified layer type <I>layer</I>, and which cannot be reattached
      to another layer. <P>
   </BLOCKQUOTE>

<H3>Implementation Notes:</H3>
   <BLOCKQUOTE>
      <B>label</B> is implemented as a built-in command in <B>magic</B>.
   </BLOCKQUOTE>

<H3>See Also:</H3>
   <BLOCKQUOTE>
      <A HREF=setlabel.html><B>setlabel</B></A> <BR>
      <A HREF=port.html><B>port</B></A> <BR>
   </BLOCKQUOTE>

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<P><I>Last updated:</I> March 17, 2021 at 11:11am <P>
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